Techniques for accessing controlled media objects

• US 8,843,414 B2
• Filed: 02/04/2005
• Issued: 09/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Wolff, Gregory J., Graham, Jamey
• Primary Examiner(s): Ravetti, Dante
• Application Number:
  US11/051,072
• Publication Number:
  US 20080086422A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,518 Days
• Field of Search: 705/59, 705/16, 705/21, 705/50, 705/71, 380/44, 380/262, 380/278
• US Class Current: 705/59
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]

Abstract

Techniques for managing media objects are provided. The techniques include providing an algorithm configured to generate an identifier (ID) based on content of a first media object. The ID is then generated for the first media object. The ID allows the first device to identify the first media object to a second device. The second device is configured to use the ID to determine if a second media object associated with the ID is accessible to the second device. Also, the determination is made notwithstanding source information for the first and second media objects or digital rights restrictions imposed on the first and second media objects, where the first media object and second media object include substantially identical content.

Claims

1. A method for managing media objects by a plurality of devices each acting as their own registry of media objects available to it, the method comprising:

receiving, at a first device from a second device, a first identifier generated by the second device for a first media object obtained from at least one of a plurality of content providers;

determining, by the first device, an algorithm based on the first identifier for the first media object, the determined algorithm being the same as that used by the second device to generate the first identifier for the first media object based on content data of the first media object;

generating, by the first device, a first identifier for a second media object obtained from at least another one of the plurality of content providers based on content of the second media object using the same algorithm used by the second device that generated the first identifier for the first media object;

comparing, by the first device, the first identifier for the first media object to the first identifier for the second media object;

determining, by the first device, that the first identifier for the first media object obtained from the at least one of the plurality of content providers matches the first identifier for the second media object obtained from the at least another one of the plurality of content providers based on the comparing the first identifier for the first media object to the first identifier for the second media object; and

outputting, by the first device, the second media object in response to the determining that the first identifier for the first media object obtained from the at least one of the plurality of content providers matches the first identifier for the second media object obtained from the at least another one of the plurality of content providers.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining, by the first device, the algorithm based on the first identifier for the first media object comprises:

determining, by the first device, the algorithm based on information specified in the first identifier for the first media object.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein generating, by the first device, the first identifier for the second media object comprises:

including, by the first device, information identifying the algorithm in the first identifier for the second media object.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving the first media object at the second device from a first content provider; and

receiving the second media object at the first device from a second content provider.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first media object is identified using first source information by the first content provider, the second media object is identified using second source information by the second content provider, and the first source information is different from the second source information.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first source information comprises a first URL and the second source information comprises a second URL.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the first media object is in a first format associated with the first source information, the second media object is in a second format associated with the second source information, and the first format is different from the second format.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the first device, an encryption key; and

decrypting, by the first device using the encryption key, the second media object to obtain the content of the second media object prior to generating the first identifier for the second media object.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the first device, whether the second media object is accessible to the first device based on a registry maintained by the first device of media objects stored by the first device.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the first device, additional information related to the first media object in order to determine whether the second media object is accessible to the first device, the additional information comprising the algorithm used to generate the first identifier for the first media object, an offset of content from the first media object, a decryption key, an identifier for the first device, or a combination thereof.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first media object is locally accessible to the first device.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device or the second device comprises a music player.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the first identifier for the first media object comprises:

reading, by the first device, a fixed representation of the first identifier for the first media object, wherein the fixed representation is created by a first output device and comprises a paper medium that includes the first identifier for the first media object printed thereon.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the algorithm is a hash algorithm or a fingerprint algorithm to generate identifiers using at least a portion of content of a given media object.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the first device, a second identifier generated by the second device for the first media object, the second identifier for the first media object generated based upon a portion of the content of the first media object;

receiving, by the first device, an offset indicating the portion of the content of the first media object used to generate the second identifier for the first media object;

determining, by the first device, that the second media object corresponds to the first media object using the first identifier for the first media object and the first identifier for the second media object;

identifying, by the first device, a portion of the content of second media object that is relevant to the portion of the first media object used to generate the second identifier for the first media object based upon the offset; and

outputting, by the first device, the portion of the content of the second media object.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, by the first device, the first identifier for the first media object comprises:

receiving, at the first device, a bar code from a scan of a paper medium; and

determining, by the first device, the first identifier for the first media object from the bar code.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving, by the first device, the first identifier for the first media object comprises:

detecting, by the first device, a radio frequency identifier using a radio frequency receiver; and

determining, by the first device, the first identifier for the first media object from the radio frequency identifier.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein determining, by the first device, the algorithm based on the first identifier for the first media object comprises:

separating, by the first device, information indicative of the algorithm from the first identifier.

19. A system comprising:

a processor associated with a first device; and

a non-transitory memory storing a set of instructions which when executed by the processor causes the processor to perform the steps of;

receiving, at the first device from a second device, a first identifier generated by the second device for a first media object obtained from at least one of a plurality of content providers;

determining an algorithm based on the first identifier for the first media object, the determined algorithm being the same as that used by the second device to generate the first identifier for the first media object based on content data of the first media object;

generating a first identifier for a second media object obtained from at least another one of the plurality of content providers based on content of the second media object using the same algorithm used by the second device that generated the first identifier for the first media object;

comparing the first identifier for the first media object to the first identifier for the second media object;

determining that the first identifier for the first media object obtained from the at least one of the plurality of content providers matches the first identifier for the second media object obtained from the at least another one of the plurality of content providers based on the comparing the first identifier for the first media object to the first identifier for the second media object; and

output the second media object in response to the determining that the first identifier for the first media object obtained from the at least one of the plurality of content providers matches the first identifier for the second media object obtained from the at least another one of the plurality of content providers.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein determining the algorithm based on the first identifier for the first media object comprises:

retrieving the algorithm from information specified in the first identifier.

21. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having stored thereon a series of instructions that when executed by a processor of a first device causes the processor to perform the steps of:

receiving, at the first device from a second device, a first identifier generated by the second device for a first media object obtained from at least one of a plurality of content providers;

determining an algorithm based on the first identifier for the first media object, the determined algorithm being the same as that used by the second device to generate the first identifier for the first media object based on content data of the first media object;

generating a first identifier for a second media object obtained from at least another one of the plurality of content providers based on content of the second media object using the same algorithm as that used by the second device to generate the first identifier for the first media object;

comparing the first identifier for the first media object to the first identifier for the second media object;

determining that the first identifier for the first media object obtained from the at least one of the plurality of content providers matches the first identifier for the second media object obtained from the at least another one of the plurality of content providers based on the comparing the first identifier for the first media object to the first identifier for the second media object; and

outputting the second media object in response to the determining that the first identifier for the first media object obtained from the at least one of the plurality of content providers matches the first identifier for the second media object obtained from the at least another one of the plurality of content providers.

22. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 21, wherein determining the algorithm based on the first identifier for the first media object comprises:

retrieving the algorithm from information specified in the first identifier.